I am waiting to book a cruise on the Splendor on May 1st. Do to work considerations I have to waiting maybe 2 more months. On the Carnival web page it seems very few cabins are left. What I am looking for is some how to see the over all availablity of cabins. On the web page I can only see 1 deck at a time and I assume only what Carnival has for sale. Are there more cabins open that what I see from Carnival?

You must also consider, that some travel agents can get a group of cabins which they hope to sell, but if not, after a certain amount of time, they get turned back in and will show up, as "available"...So, even though it looks like most are booked, that isn't always the case...I would keep checking and hopefully you will find out when you have the time off to go and then go ahead and book...

First, you never want to book directly with the cruise line or an online site. You need to book with an agent because they can tell you all the cabins that are available and the difference in the various price codes - some of which may be of interest to you and others may not. They can explain the options and the restrictions associated with each one.

With that said, it's always best to book as soon as possible. The prices shown right now may very well be the best price offered. Should the rates go up, you're protected. Should the rates go down, your agent can usually get the price difference for you, provided final payment has not yet been made. After that date, it depends on the fare code you booked under. Again, your agent can explain all this to you as it can get complicated.

But the bottom line is, almost always it's best not to wait and book later. Not only can the prices have gone up, but the availability of cabins becomes less desirable.

Pete

__________________Travel Agent/Cruise Specialist w/14 yrs exp and 50 Cruises on 12 different cruise lines in many parts of the world! Vietnam Veteran Owned & Operated. Certified Accessible Travel Advocate. Specializing in unsurpassed personal service to insure you have a hassle-free vacation!

First, you never want to book directly with the cruise line or an online site. You need to book with an agent because they can tell you all the cabins that are available and the difference in the various price codes - some of which may be of interest to you and others may not. They can explain the options and the restrictions associated with each one.

With that said, it's always best to book as soon as possible. The prices shown right now may very well be the best price offered. Should the rates go up, you're protected. Should the rates go down, your agent can usually get the price difference for you, provided final payment has not yet been made. After that date, it depends on the fare code you booked under. Again, your agent can explain all this to you as it can get complicated.

But the bottom line is, almost always it's best not to wait and book later. Not only can the prices have gone up, but the availability of cabins becomes less desirable.

Pete

That's all well and good Pete, but really has nothing to do with what the original poster asked.

He/she stated quite clearly due to work considerations they couldn't book for another "2 or more months". They were wanting to check cabin availability, and all you did was talk about the how good it is to use a travel agent

The Carnival website does only seem to show a few cabins in each class and you have to click around the ship to see different areas of the ship. A TA can help or check out other websites as mentioned. The one I use you can start at the lowest category and "climb" your way up the cost ladder seeing what is available in each category. (They don't let you climb down in cost, clever buggers.)

That's all well and good Pete, but really has nothing to do with what the original poster asked.

He/she stated quite clearly due to work considerations they couldn't book for another "2 or more months". They were wanting to check cabin availability, and all you did was talk about the how good it is to use a travel agent

As a moderator, it would behoove you to provide information to the poster instead of always trying to find fault and criticize others who are trying to provide information. Not what a 'moderator' is suppose to be doing and does not set the proper 'tone' for the forum.

And I provided information not only about the benefits of using a travel agent, but also why they can help with cabin availability. In this case, he was asking about seeing available cabins. Travel agents can go into the Carnival booking site and find cabins that are available, which he/she will not find in any of the booking sites. We can enter actual cabin numbers and see if they are available - the online sites, including Carnival, do not provide this information.

Pete

__________________Travel Agent/Cruise Specialist w/14 yrs exp and 50 Cruises on 12 different cruise lines in many parts of the world! Vietnam Veteran Owned & Operated. Certified Accessible Travel Advocate. Specializing in unsurpassed personal service to insure you have a hassle-free vacation!

So, If I am reading the reply correctly, Carnival's web page does not list all avilable cabins?

Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, no.

Let me explain; Carnival's website is like most of the other websites online. Their system only feeds what the computer thinks are the 10 best cabins available in the category you're looking at. There could be 100 cabins available, but they'll only show 10. If there are 10 cabins or less available, then you will see all that are available. And there could be 8 or 9 different categories within a certain type of cabin (inside, oceanview, balcony, etc.), so you'll have to look at each category to see what is available.

Hope that makes sense.

However, if you contact Carnival directly or a travel agent, they can go into the Carnival booking site and see what other cabins are available, if any.

Lastly, when looking at a cabin, you'll want to look at the deck plan and not only see where the cabin is (fore, aft, midship), but you'll want to see what's above you, below you, beside you, and across the hall from you to insure you're not around a noisy area. For example, you don't want to be directly below the Lido Deck, especially the pool area. This can be very noisy. Same thing holds true for a galley, buffet area, etc.

Pete

__________________Travel Agent/Cruise Specialist w/14 yrs exp and 50 Cruises on 12 different cruise lines in many parts of the world! Vietnam Veteran Owned & Operated. Certified Accessible Travel Advocate. Specializing in unsurpassed personal service to insure you have a hassle-free vacation!